


Blue Matter is a Tricky Thing

by Darkmoonwriter



Category: Steam Powered Giraffe
Genre: Blue Matter, Bodyswap, Magic, drama?
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-18
Updated: 2018-02-18
Packaged: 2019-03-21 00:35:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,383
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13729368
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Darkmoonwriter/pseuds/Darkmoonwriter
Summary: Walter worker David never got along swimmingly with The Spine, not that it affected their work. A strange side effect of blue matter is discovered soon after a regular maintenance check-up. (Basically, David and The Spine switch bodies like its Freaky Friday.)





	1. Triple checked

**Author's Note:**

> So, I started writing this back in 2016, around when Quintessential was released. So sadly, no zero. :(

David woke up just like every other morning, with a groan. His bed was just too soft and perfect to be able to jump out and start the day. Sitting up he stretched, his back popping a bit too audible for his taste. 

It only took him a few more minutes to get dressed in the standard Walter worker uniform and push aside the curtain that serviced as a door. (Long story...his boss apparently didn't believe in doors.) He walked swiftly down the hall to the bathroom, only to have a sudden blur dart in front of him and a mischievous giggle.

"Isabella get out of the bathroom! It was obviously my turn." David scolded his sister.

"Snooze you lose!" Her chipper voice replied on the other side of the curtain. His job sure was a dream come true until his twin decided to apply to Walter robotics and got hired right away. Not that he had anything against his sister, he loved her of course but God, sometimes she just got on his nerves. Grumbling, he made his way down the hall to another bathroom. Walter guy Sam soon joined him, Walking in stride.

"Morning David! You look chipper as always." The ginger beamed. He was always a morning person. While David on the other hand...

"Good morning, Sam. Didn't get much sleep last night is all. Does Rabbit really have to keep practicing her accordion all through the night?" Sam shrugged in response.

"Don't ask me, Bunny is supposed to be in charge of her. I look after Hatchworth."

"How is that going for you?" David asked, coming to a stop In front of yet another occupied bathroom.

"Surprisingly well. I was a bit nervous at first, I thought he was going to be a handful, like Rabbit, but he’s chill....Not as chill as the spine of course." Sam elbowed David as if he was lucky to have such an easy job, David scoffed.

"Oh yeah, that cowboy is super chill. Trust me, Sam, sometimes that guy is just as hard to deal with as the other bots." And with that, David excused himself to jump into the bathroom before any other worker jumped in front of him.

\--------

It was business as usual at Walter manner. The workers went through their daily chores, David tended to pace himself more than the others. Taking his time, double and triple checking each checklist. He was just adding his second row of check marks to his list of shipment supplies when the intercom crackled to life.

"David? Mr. Walter needs a hand in the workshop number 15 with Spine." A polite woman's voice said on the other side, he recognized it as Walter girl Camille. David pressed the button on the Wall.

"Of course, right away." He rose from his seat and made his way down to the 15th workshop, mind already trying to decide what was the problem this time. His best guess was Spine blowing another fuse while trying to deal with his siblings. He was getting into the habit of that as of late.

After getting lost a few times, David finally made it to his destination. Glancing around the cluttered room, Peter waved him over from behind a plastic curtain.

"Yo! In here." David hurried forward, moving back the curtain and jumping back a bit in surprise.

"Is he alright!?!"

On the table, The Spine's form was laying on his back motionless. Obviously powered down, however, his shirt and vest were removed and his chest was open. A large hole was opened up straight to his blue matter core. The core glowed with a brilliant, smoky light, highlighting the dust practicals floating in the air.

"Oh yeah, just a check-up. To avoid a recap of what happened to Hatchy, I like to do pretty frequent check-ups at least once a month." Peter said casually as if he wasn't sticking his hand into another man's chest. David cleared his throat.

"Of course! Uh, what did you need help with sir?"

"Right now, I want you to help me write stuff down. I only have so many hands. I also want you to see what it's like in the core and get a feel for all the details. You are the spines leading technician after all." Peter explained as David came around to his side and grabbed a clipboard off the table. David avoided looking at the spine, his still face as he "slept" honestly creeped him out slightly. It was almost like he was dead. He was well aware of the fact these bots were not living and breathing, but they were just so lively!

"Uhm...I understand sir, but normally the blue matter well..matters, go to you and the Walters." He felt like what Peter was trying to do was taboo in a way. Of course, the Walter workers worked with the blue matter on a daily basis. However, when it came to the bots that were a different story. The leading techs and bandmates all had detailed knowledge of the inner workings of the bots and how to make repairs. But their core was 'off limits' only the Walter family knew the real secrets behind the very heart of these bots.

"True, but I can only do so much. I think it's important for people like you, Bun, and that mustached guy to be able to be there for the bots 100%. I am only one guy, and god forbid something happens to me. Or more than one bot has a critical error." Peter pulled his hand out from the inside of the Spine’s chasse, his thick work gloves stained with a oil.

David wasn't sure he liked the way his boss was talking. It was so....mortal. Normally Peter acted as if he walked on water...At least that's what he seemed to act like. Who knew what was going on in that man's head at any given time. Instead of voicing his concerns, he simply nodded his head and agreed with VI.

"Of course sir, I understand your reasoning and honestly would love to understand more about the central core."

“God, you are so formal. Let's switch gears."

"Of course!" David picked up his pen and began scribbling on the clipboard. “Did you do a maintenance check on the pistons uh, 32 and 24? He had mentioned some time ago he was having trouble with them."

"No, no. I mean literally switch gears." Peter held up a delicate gear he had pulled from the spine. "This one is worn down."

David stared for a moment or two, unsure if he should laugh or not. Logically Peter was hard to read sometimes, his lack of expression made it hard of course.

"Tough crowd. You are allowed to show joy while on the job every once in awhile bro." David gave an awkward laugh.

"Of course sir! That was a good one. I'll get the replacement gear get away."

A few hours went by, Peter walked David through the checklist, stopping often along the way to explain in detail a part of the core, what it meant to the rest of the system and so on. David made sure to take detailed notes for himself on the side. This was far too interesting and he didn't want to forget a single detail in case it came in handy later on. Peter really was a genius. Peter was just getting to the good part about the hydro stabilizers when a worker burst through the doors. It was none of than David's sister Bunny, covered in what looked like a large amount of mustard.

"Mr. Walter we have a situation..." She calmly began. David tried to cover a snicker unsuccessfully. She shot him a look.

"Nice look Bunny, trying on some new accessories are we?"

"Says the man who once wore a cowboy hat and covered himself in peanut butter for a vine!" She put her hands on her hips, her winged eyeliner just as sharp as her comebacks as her eyes narrowed. Peter stared at David, the empty keyhole in the center of his face made the stare just that much more judging.

"....It was art." David said simply, knowing full well he couldn't do much to defend himself. Peter chuckled, shaking his head which causes his blonde nest of hair to flop around.

"I would expect nothing else from you."

"Sir, we have a problem? QWERTY is upset about that whole Spine situation. He is going haywire. Steve and I tried to calm him down but well..." Bunny trailed off, the defeat evident in her eyes and clear from the bright color of the stains on her dress.

"Oh, ok. You got this David, right?" Peter turned to him and handed him his pair of work gloves.

"I've got...?" David glanced at the spine, his chest was wide open, the secondary casting for the core was open, and the hydro pumps were in pieces laid out on the table next to them. His eyes widened. "Sir you can't be serious I'm not experienced enough to-"

"You got dis. TTYL!" Peter waved following Bunny out of the workshop. David blinked and watched them walk off.

"Tty....Talk to you later?" David frowned. He was left alone in the workspace with one messed up robot. David tossed his clipboard on the table and pulled up a chair. Slumping down in it as he looked at the tall order asked of him. David had worked on the Spine before, no problem. However, they were small things. Small repairs that the Spine never had to be powered down for. Now Peter was basically asking him to put together this guy's heart. David rose from his seat, taking a deep breath. He could do this. He had to prove himself to the Walters that he could be trusted with the bots. He slipped on the work gloves and pulled his goggles down over his eyes. Good thing he wrote down everything Peter told him...

\----

Moment of truth. David set aside a rag he was using to wipe down his hands. Everything should be in order. All there was to do was power the Spine back up. David reached the base of The Spines head, activating the small trigger to start the startup sequence.

David stood back and waited...

And waited...

And waited, but nothing happened!

A sinking feeling started in his stomach that dragged it down to the 7th and final layer of hell. He had done something wrong. Oh God. God. He swallowed hard and turned back to his clipboard, frantically flipping through the papers. What could he have missed!? The young mechanic looked up and screamed.

The spine was sitting up. Leaned forward in his face, green optics wide and unblinking. The spine gave a hearty chuckle as David scrambled back.

"I apologize Mr.Bennett. That was rather mean of me." The spines warm, low voice filled the room and instantly put him at ease.

"It's ok. You scared me. I thought something was wrong is all." David breathed a sigh of relief.

"Oh of course not." The Spine straightened. The vertebrae on his spine popping back out. The spine let out a puff of steam. "No, everything seems to be in order. You did a wonderful job."

"Thanks." David sighed. "Please, if anything is out of place..." He moved aside to let the Spine stand.

"Will do Mr.Bennett. May I ask where Pete went off to?" The automaton towered over him. He moved towards the neatly folded shirt, vest and tie in the corner of the space and began dressing.

"Something to do with QWERTY. Don't worry, he gave you a clean bill of health with that core of yours." The spine smiled in thanks and glanced over his shoulder.

"Ah, darn it all. I'm sure they handled in thought."

And with that, the human and bot lapsed into an awkward silence. they weren't close, friends? Of course not. Acquaintances? Hardly. Every conversation they had ever had was always overly formal, and always business related. It didn't take long for both of them to understand either of them were not skilled in the art of small talk.

"Mr. Bennett?" The Spine asked. Straightening his tie. "Was there anything else you needed?" David blinked, realizing he was staring.

"Uh, no. Just trying to remember what I was doing before I was called." David picked up the spines fedora and handed it over. The Spine gave a polite smile, but it fell when a sudden arch of static jumped between their hands during the trade-off. David flinched slightly. It was a large charge, a bright blue crackle.

"I apologize Mr.bennett, are you alright?" The Spine returned his hat to his head. Of course, the bot didn't feel anything from the discharge.

"It's fine The Spine. Just a little static is all. Nothing that can be helped." David gave a strained smile and backed up. "So I should get back to work. You enjoy the rest of your day!"

"You too Mr.bennett!" The Spine called after the man as he slipped from the room. David Bennett had always been a mystery to the Spine, even before he was designated head technician. David didn't warm up fast, which The Spine was equally guilty of. Maybe that was why they struggled to be friends. They were just way too similar in personality to blend well.

The rest of the day went by smoothly. The bots made little trouble, so that left the Walter workers in peace to get through the rest of their duties. David made his way down one of the many hallways of the manor, happening to pass by one of the sitting rooms. Inside, the bots Rabbit, Hatchworth, and The Spine were gathered around. The Spine and Hatchworth were sporting their guitar and bass respectively, Rabbit had a notebook sitting on her lap and was scribbling away.

"W-what ever this is, we are NOT turning it into another l-l-l-love song." The pink haired automaton directed that to The Spine, who was settled in an armchair next to her. The silver man had a melancholy look, plucking at his guitar.

"I don't get what's the big deal about another love song."

"Because all you write is love songs, Spine!" The bot blinked her incredibly long eyelashes at her brother. "P-p-pleeeeease can we write something else for a change?" 

"I don't see you coming up with any ideas." The Spine pointed out. Rabbits shoulders slumped. 

"Hey! What about a song about anti-love?" Hatchworth chimed in. 

“Anti-love? You mean hate?" Rabbit cocked her head, causing her top hat to nearly slid off in the process. 

"A hate song. You are suggesting we write a hate song. Hatchy...No, just no." The Spine shook his head, It wasn’t really their style. Hatchworth deflated slightly.

“It was just an idea, shot in the dark." 

"Oh, don't get upset Hatchy! We know you're just trying to help with ideas." Rabbit patted her younger brother on the back reassuringly. She looked up to find David still standing in the doorway, having been caught up in their discussion. “Hey! It's Bunny's brother! Maybe h-h-he can help us! What do you think we should write our next song about Mistah Bennett!?!” All optics turned to David, who actually flushed a bit, taken aback by being put on the spot like that. 

"Well uh- I mean....I sorta liked your song about Rex Marksley..." He muttered, focusing more on the floor than the bots. The Spines lips parted in a wide grin, Rex Marksley was one of his favorites too. 

"I like that, we could revisit the old West." The Spine suggested, leaning back in his chair, a pleased far off look reflected in his optics. 

"Or write a new adventure!" Rabbit cried with excitement. 

"Well, I did read an old story somewhere about a man raised by wolves in Africa..." Hatchworth offered. His siblings edged him on to tell the tale. David took this opportunity to slip out of the room and go on his way. It was always nice to see the bots bonding over music like that. They were the closest siblings he had ever met. Seeing the bots like that made him wish he had time to bond with Isabella. 

Speak of the devil, as David turned the corner there was his sister chatting with Sam. 

"Hey, David." Bunny greeted him with a kind smile, pushing some of her black hair behind her ear. "Sam and I were just talking about how we should all go out this weekend and do something fun. It's pretty rare we get a day off." 

"I'm still voting for dancing!" Sam grinned. "I've been ache'n to bust a move on a dance floor." To demonstrate, Sam began making some wild movement that David could only assume was his version of dancing. 

"That sounds...interesting." He put it politely. To be honest, David was perfectly fine with staying in his room and having a gaming session.

“Don't worry Guys, I will still be the best wingwoman this side of San Diego " She reassured them both. “It’ll be fun and we’ll all find someone to dance with and have a great time.”

"I'll think about it..." David muttered.

"Don't be a party pooper!" Bunny pouted slightly "We need to get you out more!"

"I'll think about it," David repeated, The only thing he could honestly think about was getting to sleep tonight. 

"Alright, Mr.grumpy pants." Bunny poked him in the arm. 

"Just get some sleep man, you look tired." Sam patted him on the back.

"Wow, thanks."

It didn't take long for David to reach his bedroom and settle down for the night. He had had a long day and was ready for bed. Settling down under the covers, he shut off the lights and fell asleep the moment his head hit the pillow.


	2. Systems running at 95.0777%

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter one from The Spines point of view. Promise I won't do this the whole fic...

/[incoming message....]/  
/[Message received]/  
/Rabbit: Wakey Wakey :]/   
/[Respond Y/N?]/  
/N/  
/Incoming message...]/  
/[Message received]/  
/Rabbit: :/ you gotta get up Spine. Don't ignore me./  
/[Respond? Y/N?]/  
/N/  
/[Incoming message]/  
/[incoming message....]/  
/[incoming message....]/  
/[Message box full]/

The Spine powered up his optics, silver eyelids fluttering open. The green light illuminating the dim hall of wires. Hidden among the wires in the ceiling The Spine could at least pretend for a little while that he had no responsibilities...If only Rabbit could leave him alone.

The automaton slithered across the wires to his chassis. Connecting and bringing all of his systems back online was a morning routine that the Spine took his time with. He held on the few, quiet moments he had each morning before having to dive headfirst into the wacky adventure that was life at Walter manner. That wasn’t to say The Spine disliked life there, on the contrary, he looked forward to each twist and turn. However, peace and quiet was a rare commodity he didn’t take lightly. 

When The spine finally did exit the Hall of Wires, straightening his tie, both of his siblings were waiting for him. Rabbit was pacing back and forth while Hatchwoth smiled at them all. 

“F-f-finally!” The impatient bot cried, arms crossed as she stopped in front of him. “You're s-s-so lazy, The Spine!” She let out a puff of steam, obviously disapproving. 

“I bet you’re all wondering why I gathered you here...” Hatchworth said to the wall, neither bot paid his joke any mind. 

“What has gotten you all riled up today, Rabbit?” The Spine asked with a frown. Was there going to be another ice cream parade he didn’t know about? It was unlike him to forget such things. (Or anything for that matter.) 

“Oh, you dummins! Today is our brain storm’n day! For new songs! Come on! We have loads of ideas already. W-we have them written on the whiteboard!” She quickly reached out and grabbed the silver bots hand, tugging. Of course, The spine didn’t budge. 

“Oooh. I see now. Of course Rabbit I haven’t forgotten. I just have an appointment with Peter this morning. Today is check up day.” He watched as she deflated, halting her useless tugging and turned to face him. 

“W-w-what!?! No fair! I want to start writing together now!” She let go of his hand and pouted, arms stiffly something up to cross, shoulders hunched, a pose she had learned from many a young Peter Walter when they didn’t get their way. Rabbit was all around adorable, batting her eyelashes and sticking out her bottom lip in hope of gaining The Spines pitty. Spine gave a kind smile and patted her shoulder.

“There, there, Rabbit. We can always write after. Why don’t you and Hatchy go feed the ducks for a while? The check-up should not take long at all. My systems are running fine, Peter just wants to do a quick diagnostics on the blue matter core to make sure everything is working a-okay.” 

“It won’t take long?” She asked, looking up at him with large doe eyes. “Because I won’t wait forever. T-T-To many brilliant ideas bounce’n around in here.” She reached up and tapped her temple, giving him a smile. The spine nodded, starting to take his leave.

“It shouldn’t. I’ll join you before you know it.” With one final wave, The Spine started down the long hallway and turned the corner towards one of Peter’s workshops. Hatchworth finally turned to see The Spine walked away. 

“Hey! It’s The Spine! Where’s he going?” 

“Come on Hatchy, let’s go visit the pond.” Rabbit suggested rather dejectedly, leading the bronze robot off in the opposite direction of The Spine. 

\---

“Pete? Are you in here?” The Spine called as he entered the workshop. Only silence replied, causing the bot to frown. Peter had asked to meet him here, hadn’t he? Was The Spine mistake? No, his memory was photographic after all. Perhaps Peter was the one who had forgotten. The Spine pressed further into the workshop. The Spine would be lying to himself if he didn’t admit there was, in fact, a small part of him that just wanted to leave and not try to find Peter to remind him of their engagement. However, he knew these check-ups were important to Peter and the Walters.

Bright green optics scanned the room, looking past tools, half-finished projects and the general mess that Peter called a workspace. How he could focus in such a whirlwind was beyond The Spine. On some level, he even admired him for it. 

“Sup?” Peter’s voice sounded, causing the bot to jump. Looking around he still didn’t see him. 

“Where are you, Pete? I’m here for that check up you arranged.”

“OH. I totally remembered I was just ignoring you when you came in. I’m down here.” He looked down to see Peter looking up at him from a small hole in the floor. Peter lifted an arm and made grabby hands. The Spine took his hand and pulled, confused as to where this hole came from and where it leads to, but he knew better than to ask. Helping Peter to his feet, The Spine watched as the pitch black hole closed behind him, leaving no trace of it ever being there. “Now then, let’s have a looky-loo inside you.” Peter lead the way to one of the workshop tables.

Peter Walter VI was strange, but then again every Peter Walter was strange. The Spine seemed unphased by Peter’s odd babbling. He listened politely at Peters poor attempt at small talk but didn’t say much in reply. The Spine began undoing his tie and unbuttoning his vest and shirt, folding them all neatly and placing them on a side table before getting up on the table. The Spine finally came out of his own thoughts when he noticed the lack of sounds coming from Peter. Green optics glanced to see the expressionless mask staring at Spine. 

“Hey Uh, Question. Sorta real talk.” Peter began, laying out his tools one by one on a tray. “So uh...What do you think of Mr.David Bennett?” 

The Spine was taken aback somewhat. What did his thoughts matter? David was The Spines leading technician, the most experienced with his inner workings besides the Walters themselves. The Change had been fairly recent, only in the past few months. It was immediate as it was sudden. David and the silver bot were being forced to spend more and more time together...Yet that did little to ease any awkwardness between them.

“Why he’s a fine mechanic and scientist. I don’t think anyone else would be a better fit for the job besides you, Pete.” The Spine replied with a stiff politeness.

“Yeah, but like you’re feelings and junk. What do you think of David as a person? Like do you like him is what I’m asking.”

“You’re...asking my personal feelings about Mr.Bennett?”

“Spine, this isn’t a business talk, this is a Nephew and Uncle talk.” The young scientist crossed his arms. “The rest have been getting along great with their new lead techs...minus some hiccups here and there, but I hear you and David are...”

“Formal.” The Spine butted in. 

“I mean, yeah that’s all well and good, but David’s smarts weren’t the only reason why I assigned him to you.” The bot frowned at that, the statement wasn’t logical. Why else would you hire someone if not for their skill sets? 

“I do not understand.”

“I’m saying you need my friends, dude.” Peter looked up from slipping his work gloves on. “I thought David and You would be BFF’s 5ever but you two hardly look at each other. I’m just trying to ask if something's wrong, like did he say or do something to upset you?”

“Oh, course not! Mr.Bennett has been nothing else but professional. I appreciate the concern Peter, but you don’t need to worry enough to try and ‘hire’ me any new friends. I like Mr.Bennett as a person and hope to get to know him more in the future. You are right, maybe I should try to open up to him since we are working so closely together.” The Spine said exactly what he knew Peter wanted to hear, hoping to put the topic to bed. It was true that The Spine approved of David’s character, at least the parts he knew. However, He wasn’t making plans to play 20 questions with the man to try and get to know him better. It wasn’t that he didn’t care, but he had a feeling that the feeling was mutual on David’s side of things. That man was all work and no play, and one of the few people to get a lot done around the manor when it came to the bots. The Spine wasn’t about to complain about that.

Peter looked at the bot curiously for a few moments longer, deathly silent as he tilted his head. Spine was often left guessing about what was going on inside that mans head. After another few moments, Peter shrugged casually.

“Alrighty, Wanna get this show on the road?” Peter gestured for The Spine to lay back, which he did. “I’m going to manually put you offline for a bit, K?” He already had his hand on the back of The Spines neck, feeling up until he felt the small button at the base of his skull that served as the manual switch. The Spine gave a hum of confirmation as closed his eyes just before Peter hit the switch and his world went dark. 

\---

[/Startup sequence initiated./]

[/System update: Systems running at 95.0777%/]

[/Loading data sync/]

[/5 missed messages from Rabbit./]

Coming back online The Spine was greeting by only silence, odd sense usually Peter filled his workroom with constant chatter with or without a conscious guest. Keeping his optics closed he waited and listened. He heard a distressed sigh and the sound of papers being shuffled back and forth. Taking a peek he saw David standing next to the table, clipboard in hand, oil streaking his face from his work. The man was too absorbed in his notes and panic to notice the robot had come back online to stare curiously at him. The Spine briefly thought back to what Peter had mentioned, maybe this was his chance to bring a little fun into the workplace. Trying his best to keep his movements quiet, he raised up onto his elbows and leaned out towards David, staring wide-eyed at him. It was only about a second later the man looked up and had the shock of his life. 

"I apologize Mr.Bennett. That was rather mean of me." Spine chuckled. The rest of their interaction was very stiff and awkward, as always. Spine’s joke didn’t seem to release any tension, but on the bright side, it didn’t seem to add to it. He thought to himself as he straightened his tie. If only they could find something they had in common...Hard to find when comparing human to robot. Turning, he caught David’s stare, wondering if he was thinking the same things. 

"Was there anything else you needed?"

"Uh, no. Just trying to remember what I was doing before I was called." The young scientist muttered, picking up The Spine’s hat out of politeness and handing it over. Spine felt something during the small static discharge. He couldn’t describe it properly, something that didn’t hurt, but tugged at his core. 

"I apologize Mr.bennett, are you alright?" Spine asked with concern, knowing Humans were a lot more susceptible to pain, and that arch of light seemed to pack a punch. David assured him quickly that he was fine and hurried off. Spine watched him go, returning his hat to the rightful place on top of his head. What a strange man Mr.Bennett was...Spine started to head down the hallways in the opposite direction, knowing full well Rabbit was on the verge of busting a gear. 

\---

"A hate song. You are suggesting we write a hate song. Hatchy...No, just no." The Spine shook his head, It wasn’t really their style.

The bots had been sitting together for the past hour or so in one of the many sitting rooms. Dinner time for the humans was approaching, and they still were at a loss for what their next big hit should be. Rabbit frowned down at the notebook she had been doodling in, she was adding a cartoon Hatchworth next to the crudely drawn version of her brother Spine. Spine chose not to comment on the poor representation it was of him. Instead, the silver bot plucked a few notes. He watched his hand glide across the strings, the one time his movements weren’t so stiff and robotic...almost human.

“Hey! It's Bunny's brother! Maybe h-h-he can help us! What do you think we should write our next song about Mistah Bennett!?!” 

Spine looked up to see David standing awkwardly in the doorway, his pale face flushed slightly from being caught staring at the bots again. 

"Well uh- I mean....I sorta liked your song about Rex Marksley..." He muttered, focusing more on the floor than the bots. The Spines lips parted in a wide grin, Rex Marksley was one of his favorites too. 

"I like that, we could revisit the old West." He suggested, leaning back in his armchair. His imagination taking him back to the wide-open plains, the warm breeze rushing past as he painted a sunset fit for a king in his mind. 

"Well, I did read an old story somewhere about a man raised by wolves in Africa..." Hatchworth offered. 

“Tell us more Hatchy!” Rabbit adjusted in her seat, casting the notebook aside and scooting closer to her brother. The Brass bot happily launched into the wild tale, The Spine listened with a loose interest, fingers still plucking softly. He glanced up at David once again, mouth open to offer him a seat, but the young tech was already turned away heading down the hall at his normally speedy pace. The Bot shut his mouth, perhaps he still had a few more tasks to complete...Spine tried not to take it personally.


End file.
